These are the classes to avoid at Williams. You can only take 32 classes while you're here, so take interesting classes and stay away from those below. If it is the professor, rather than the subject matter itself, that makes the class boring, please make a note to that effect -- keeping in mind the bounds of courtesy and discretion, and the fact that the best place for comments of professors' abilities is Factrak.
Contents
Psychology 201
Psych stats is a much more hands-on way to learn statistics than Stat 201, because you have to calculate standard deviations, sums of squared error, etc. by hand, so that you really know where the numbers come from. But this means that the class spends a lot of time adding and subtracting and working out the arithmetic details, rather than learning about the concepts. It's required for the psych major -- and don't let it discourage you from doing the major and taking all the other interesting courses -- but just don't get your hopes up.
Statistics 201
The subject is important, and the material can be interesting at times, but much too much emphasis is on learning to use the software (JMP) and interpreting computer output, which is not interesting. This is mainly a technical class, not exactly an integral part of your liberal arts education.
- Dissent: Stat 201 with Professor Botts is most assuredly not all about software or data output. In fact, there was almost none of that in Botts' 201 section this semester. While it isn't exactly earth-shattering, high-concept, abstract math, it is by no means a technical course.
Also, if you happen to have taken AP Statistics in high school, then STAT 201 will literally be about 95% review for you.
If you're taking Stat 201 now, just be glad you didn't take it while Professor Racz was around in 03-04. Then, it made for a semester of mindnumbing intellectually-insulting drudgery.
If you are considering taking stats in the future, keep in mind that if Professor Klingenberg were a superhero, his super power would be to turn dry material into a waterfall of intellectually stimulating learning. I can honestly say that his Statistics 201 class was one of the classes I looked forward to going to most during my time at Williams (a feat, given that I found my major incredibly interesting). While his abilities to judge how long a problem set will take (if he says it's long, no big deal, if he says it is short, watch out!) are sometimes a little off, there is NO WAY his Stat 201 is one of the most boring classes at Williams. Given that, I'd like to make a motion to take this class off this list, or only keep it here conditionally. If you agree, register support on the discuss page.
Economics 110
Charts and graphs, charts and graphs, charts and graphs...
And some elementary arithmetic too.
Seconded - very dull and easy
Physics 100
Boring doesn't even begin to describe this class. And it's not that easy, either. General accepted knowledge is that it used to be easy and fun (and was called fun-hundred, in fact). However, now it has become a scary crash course in relativity. If you find a physics major to help you with your homework, you may even find that they are unable to do it.
Edit: When did you take the course? Because Spring '06 had an upsettingly boring and painful professor. Rumour has it that before that it really was fun hundred.
History of Jazz
Positive: it counts as a peoples and cultures.
Negative: you need to show up to every class, as he takes attendance (starts at 8:30), and if you wanted to know it, you could read a book. It's not worth it.